- 8 -
The marginal tax rates are lowest for married individuals
filing jointly and they progressively increase for each category
as follows: Head of household, individual, and married filing
separately.
The threshold issue in determining filing status is to
determine marital status. Marital status for purposes of filing
a joint or separate return is determined under section 7703.
Under section 7703(a), a taxpayer who is "married" may be
considered unmarried for tax purposes, if he is legally separated
under a decree of divorce or separate maintenance or meets the
requirements of section 7703(b).12
An individual is considered legally separated under a decree
of divorce or separate maintenance if the decree "expressly and
affirmatively provides that the parties live apart in the
future". Capodanno v. Commissioner, 69 T.C. 638, 646 (1978),
affd. 602 F.2d 64 (3d Cir. 1979) (quoting Boettiger v.
Commissioner, 31 T.C. 477, 483 (1958)). A decree of support or
temporary alimony which does not require separation is not
considered a decree of divorce or separate maintenance within the
meaning of section 7703(a). Dunn v. Commissioner, 70 T.C. 361
(1978), affd. without published opinion 607 F.2d 995 (2d Cir.
1979).
12 Section 7703(b) requires that the taxpayer maintain as his home a
household which constitutes for more than half of the taxable year the
principal place of abode for a child with respect to whom the taxpayer is
entitled to a dependency deduction.
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Next
Last modified: May 25, 2011